This invention relates generally to an apparatus that contributes to a failure free copier/printer environment, and more particularly, to the use of tubular frame members for copiers/printers to serve as air ducts for heat, ozone and dirt management and thereby contribute to an environmentally benign or green machine.
Ordinarily, an image is placed onto the surface of a photoconductive member either by illuminating an original document which is projected upon the photoconductive member to produce a latent electrostatic image corresponding to the original document or an image is placed onto the photoconductive member by electronic means. The latent electrostatic image is developed by means of fusible particles to produce a visible toner image which is transferred to a substrate, such as, a copy sheet. The unfused toner image may be fixed to the substrate by means of heat and pressure by pressing the substrate through the nip of a pair of rollers, at least one of which is heated. A fused substrate exiting from the roller nip is in a tacky state having been heated by the heated roller.
It is essential to the maintenance of copy quality and reliability that the machine environment be controlled. Excessive heat can contribute to mechanical failures and cause circuit boards to malfunction. Ozone emission is tightly regulated for health and safety reasons and dirt has been shown to be one of the most significant contributors to machine failures and service actions. Air systems are used in almost all office products as a means of controlling the machine environment. In smaller machines a single blower will generally purge and cool the entire machine with ambient air. In larger machines, several blowers are generally required to service subsystems by the addition or removal of air. For example, in some machines, the area above the fuser is cooled by a high capacity axial fan, but this has a tendency to flutter lightweight sheets. In these machines, duct work is often required to direct the air since it is not always practical to place an air handling device directly at the point of application.
In addition, paper debris (fibers, dust fillers, etc.) contribute significantly to failures in machines. For instance: debris in the paper path fouls sensors, solenoids, and frictional materials; fillers foul fuser oil; and fibers ruin photoreceptor belts. Various solutions to these problems have been tried in the past. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,396,401 shows that it is old to use an air pressure system to remove loose toner from the surface of a copy sheet. In U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,522,488 and 4,556,890, vacuum cleaning systems are disclosed that include screens or bristles that contact the printhead or the recording surface of magnetic tape in a magnetographic printing device. A vacuum system in combination with a foam roll to dislodge loose fibers from the surface of copy sheets is disclosed in the Xerox Disclosure Journal, Vol. 17, No. 5, September/October 1992, page 369.
Even though the above above-described machine debris removal systems have been successful to some extent, an improvement is still needed because of the continued presence of unwanted heat, dirt and ozone in machines.